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SAN FRANCISCO, California (Reuters) -- Google Inc. is set to introduce its own instant messaging system, the Los Angeles Times reported on Tuesday, marking the expansion by the Web search leader into text and also voice communications.

Citing unnamed sources "familiar with the service," the Los Angeles Times said that Google's Instant Messaging program would be called Google Talk and could be launched as early as Wednesday.

A Google spokeswoman declined to comment on the company's product plans.

If confirmed, the combined computer text and voice-calling service would put Google in competition with a similar service pioneered by Skype, which has attracted tens of millions of users, especially in Europe, to its own service.

Separately, independent journalist Om Malik on his blog at http://gigaom.com/ pointed to technical clues that suggest Google is preparing to run an instant messaging service based on an open-source system known as Jabber.

Jabber technology would allow Google instant message users to connect with established IM systems that also work with Jabber, including America Online's ICQ and Apple Computer Inc.'s iChat, Malik said.

"This is the worst possible news for someone like Skype, because now they will be up against not two but three giants who want to offer a pale-version of Skype," he wrote.

Earlier this week, Google said it was branching out beyond pure search to help users manage e-mail, instant messages, news headlines and music. It introduced a new service called the Google Sidebar, a stand-alone software program that sits on a user's desktop and provides "live" information updates.

Over the past year or so, the company has expanded into e-mail, online maps, personalized news and more.

The product push comes as rivals Yahoo Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Time Warner Inc.'s AOL are all pushing to upgrade existing instant messaging systems and expand into new Internet phone-calling services.

Google's moves take it beyond its roots in Web search and closer to becoming a broad-based Internet media company.

With instant messaging, Google would be breaking into a market in which its major competitors boast tens of millions of subscribers to their established instant messaging services.

America Online, with its AIM and ICQ brands, counts more than 40 million IM users in the United States alone. Yahoo has around 20 million and Microsoft's MSN Messenger numbers some 14 million users, according to recent comScore Media Metrix data.

They also have google desktop search which msn brought out later. Is this a good thing because it creates competition between internet companies or is it bad cause eventually google might become the next microsoft only dominating the internet not OS's.

Google is the internet Giant. If they droped Amazon from thier search thier business would drop off quite a bit. They serve up 30%+ of all searches world wide. That might not seem like a lot but count the number of search tools on the net and it is unthinkable as far as number they deal with.

Google will be the next microsoft. But they seem to play nice so far. Microsoft played dirty from the jump. I think they are poised to release an OS with thier packages built into it. They say they have no intentions but I would love to see them buy out beOS rights and re-release it with a decent amout of capital behind the marketing.

They are one of the few companies to fight microsoft head on and win time after time. MSN search... Yea right, Hotmail or gmail... The only people I know keeping hotmail have had the same account for YEARS like 6 plus years. When they loose it... and they will eventualy gmail will be thier choice.

Yahoo I see as 3rd up in the lets dominate game, then AOL time warner. Get listed in Google, MSN, Yahoo, AOL, with decent ranking and you should have a nice amout of traffic. I think they are needed to if nothing else keep the other giants in check.

I just got google talk and use it to talk to my room mates. Its so good especially cause they have a 2 in one as it also acts as the gmail notifier. I know I can get used to this, its pretty clear on our 256kb sec.